He Fell Into The Gap

I don't envy Patrick Robinson. For years he's been trying to find his way commercially in the U.S. market with mixed success. You have to admire him for trucking on though. His sensibility is so American, so sportswear focused, yet not as street as Marc Jacobs nor as sporty 80's as Michael Kors. I've always thought his work would be hugely popular in France but as far as I know he's never worked there. In the early 2000's he was let go from Perry Ellis after only a season or two. At some point prior to that he had his own fairly well received line. Then last year he was named Creative Dir. of The Gap.

The Gap really lost it's way sometime in the late 90's, vacillating between poorly interpreted trends and generally uninspired designs. I can't decide if hiring him was a smart choice. I really like the Fall line he debuted this week (it's vaguely reminiscent of Marc's Grunge collection for Perry Ellis in the early 90's) but I'm also not the target customer which leads me to believe he won't last long. I just don't know if his work could be as bland as their market demands many pieces be. The Gap is preppy and never "over it." A wiser choice would've been to recruit him to designer one of their premium lines. Who knows, maybe they offered it to him and he turned it down. He's succeeded in updating their look by bringing some youthful energy and sex appeal, but I'm afraid it will alienate the core customer. I guess time will tell. Good luck Patrick!!